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Dense smoke obscured sight.

This was always how the Lamp viewed the world.

And the past and dreams seen by the Lamp were the same.

The Lamp opened its eyes within the thick smoke.

The first thing it saw was a rather foolish-looking man.

A foolish human who wished to become an excellent detective by making a wish to the “Man of the Lamp.”

“From now on, call me Holmes.”

The man who obtained the lamp insisted on being called Holmes.

The Lamp didn’t know what that meant, but it surely wasn’t a fitting name for this man.

And the man called the Lamp Watson.

Just that alone made him truly a foolish man.

To give a proper name to an “Object,” it wouldn’t be strange if “Nameless” appeared and tore him to shreds right away.

But this man, perhaps as foolish as he was, was also lucky…

Or perhaps it was because, like the “Man of the Lamp” said, the end of the world was approaching?

Nameless did not appear, and thus the Lamp’s name became Watson.

[….]

However, it wasn’t long before the Lamp came to see the corpse of the man sprawled dead on the ground.

The man who had bestowed the name was soon dead.

Because he couldn’t become an excellent detective.

What he possessed was not deduction or intellect, but endless self-confidence.

And, he had only the frivolity to casually call the Lamp “Watson” while leading himself to death.

Thus, he was devoured by the trials of the Lamp.

The Lamp found the foolish man quite endearing, but it was a “contract” that the Lamp could not escape.

After that, the Lamp encountered many “Holmes.”

There were good people and bad people, smart people and foolish people.

They all used the Lamp in their own ways.

But all of them wanted to be excellent detectives and met the same fate when they failed.

And the Lamp liked every one of them.

Among them, the most special was the second-to-last Holmes.

He was the first human to reach the Lamp while investigating an incomprehensible missing persons case intertwined with the Lamp.

In just a few uses, he saw through the essence of the Lamp.

He realized that seeking the Lamp’s help would always lead to the user’s death or massive destruction in their surroundings.

Just like the last Holmes had caused the Central Research Institute’s containment failure and the collapse of Songpa District when he escaped from the Central Research Institute.

Thus, the previous Holmes discovered the trap hidden by the “Man of the Lamp.”

As soon as he realized it, he started searching for a successor while minimizing the use of the Lamp.

The qualities he wanted in a successor were not intellect or anything like that.

Only immense luck, as if the world were helping, and an animalistic instinct that surpassed his own deduction.

He thought that one couldn’t defeat the “Man of the Lamp” with just intellect and reasoning.

As time passed and the trials of the Lamp grew harsher, the previous Holmes was able to find a successor.

The last Holmes.

He looked just as foolish as the first Holmes, but he possessed an instinct that transcended humanity and touched the realm of the supernatural.

The moment the Lamp saw him, it realized.

This man was the one who would destroy it.

And that premonition was spot on.

The time spent with the last Holmes was short, but oddly, the Lamp felt satisfied.

[Goodbye, last Holmes.]

As it dissolved into dust, the Lamp bid its final farewell.

*

The warm sunlight of midday tickled my face.

I woke up feeling soreness all over my body.

Opening my eyes, I saw Yerin’s doll soundly asleep.

And nestled in my arms was a Hungry Ghost Reaper.

It had a peaceful expression as if it were dreaming a happy dream.

The Hungry Ghost Reaper always smiled when it saw me, but this comfortable expression felt like the first time.

‘This expression is a first.’

Thinking that, I pinched the soft cheek of the Hungry Ghost Reaper gently.

The Hungry Ghost Reaper let out a small “Kkyu” sound and shifted its body but remained deeply asleep.

While I slowly stroked the Hungry Ghost Reaper’s head and looked around, Mini Reapers were sleeping in a circle around me.

They looked just like little chicks gathered around their mother hen.

That sight unintentionally brought a smile to my face.

When I lifted my head to see the sky, the sun was gradually tilting towards the horizon.

Perhaps because the sunlight was dimming little by little, the ruins damaged by the bombardment were increasingly filled with a desolate atmosphere, but the forest visible beyond the ruins still boasted vibrant greenery.

“Ugh….”

As I moved my body to get up, every part of me felt stiff.

Was it because I slept on the cold floor or because of my awkward position? My entire body ached.

‘If I had the original body of a Gray Reaper, I wouldn’t have felt such pain…’

Suddenly, that thought crossed my mind.

On such a hard floor, and even on a thorny field made of sharp blades, I would have been just fine.

A human body is something I can hardly get used to.

When I lifted my head, my cheek hurt as if something was pressing on it.

When I touched my cheek, I found an imprint matching the pattern on Yerin’s doll’s clothes.

Even when I was a Gray Reaper, I could get imprints, but they didn’t hurt since they didn’t deform beyond a certain point…

“Ah, it really hurts….”

I rubbed my cheek and slowly stood up.

With that small movement, Mini Reapers began to wake one by one.

‘Mom?’

‘Mom, are you awake?’

The Mini Reapers, with their hair all tangled, got up groggily.

The children, looking half-asleep, made eye contact with me and giggled.

After stroking each of the still-sleepy Mini Reapers, I tried to stand up when something was clinging to me.

It was the Hungry Ghost Reaper, sticking to my torso and not letting go.

I poked the Hungry Ghost Reaper’s cheek to wake it up, conveying my intention to the children.

‘Okay, everyone, it’s time to go back.’

Hearing my words, the Mini Reapers started to get ready one by one.

Then, Yerin’s doll, who had been bowing her head and dozing off, awakened and opened her eyes.

And when she saw us preparing to leave, she smiled with a lonely expression.

As if it was a farewell now, her gaze was filled with the loneliness of saying goodbye, and she slowly waved.

Could it be that she intended to stay in these ruins?

But I had no intention of leaving Yerin’s doll in this ruin.

How dare she escape with Yerin’s face?

I grabbed Yerin’s doll’s hand and pulled her along.

At that, Yerin’s doll’s eyes widened in surprise.

Everything that resembles Yerin is mine.

Hehe.

As the sun gradually tilted beyond the horizon, shadows elongated and melded into one.

And the moment I used teleportation, all the shadows on the desolate lot disappeared.

*

The Marshmallow Plains was regaining its familiar liveliness.

As the Mini Reapers returned one by one, the garden began to bustle more and more.

The sight of Mini Reapers returning with their bouncy steps felt like little children returning from a picnic.

‘Hehe.’

The willful laughter of Mini Reapers resonated throughout the garden.

While the Red Reapers and White Hungry Ghosts were still hardly visible, the Marshmallow Garden was starting to become quite lively.

In a corner of the Marshmallow Plains, the will of the Mini Reapers echoed.

‘New Younger Sibling!’

‘Younger Sibling!’

‘Magical Younger Sibling!’

‘There’s a shell!’

With curious voices, the Mini Reapers swarmed around.

At the center was a grandly shaped lamp.

That grand lamp was not just a decorative item that had appeared in the garden, but a new younger sibling, the Lamp Reaper.

The appearance of the Lamp Reaper was quite different from that of the other Mini Reapers.

Like a hermit crab carrying its shell, the Lamp Reaper made the grand lamp its home and shell.

If one looked closely inside the lamp, they could see an expansive world.

Inside the shell of the grand lamp was a vast sky.

That was the endless blue sky the Lamp had always dreamed of, bound by contract since birth and unable to be free.

And in the center of that vast sky, a small existence flickered gently with golden flames.

It was the true form of the Lamp Reaper, shining instead of the flame of the lamp.

The Mini Reapers hesitated for a moment at that unfamiliar sight.

But the Golden Reapers, who had always taken the lead in welcoming new siblings, were the first to step forward.

‘Younger Sibling!’

So they shouted their will and leaped without hesitation into the lamp.

The first thing the Golden Reapers stepped onto inside the lamp was the fluffy clouds.

‘It’s spacious!’

‘So wide!’

The Golden Reapers looked around in wonder and radiated their will.

Then, they spotted the Lamp Reaper and rushed over.

‘Younger Sibling!’

‘Lamp Younger Sibling!’

‘New Younger Sibling!’

And they hugged the Lamp Reaper tightly, rubbing their soft cheeks against each other.

It was a universal greeting in the Mini Reaper Garden, where they pressed their uniquely soft cheeks together.

Hehe.

As the Golden Reaper smiled brightly, other Mini Reapers began to gather their courage and enter the lamp one by one.

In a corner of the Marshmallow Plains, within the grand lamp, a small festival welcoming the new family was taking place.

Mom would keep playing with the lamp until it was time for the firefly games.